The Plumbline

All change is not growth, as all movement is not forward. (Ellen Glasgow) No, a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by the Spirit. And a person with a changed heart seeks praise from God, not from people. (Romans 2:29) The Apostle Paul is dealing with a whole lot of 'we are better than they are' mentality - it is 'better to be a Jew' than a Gentile kind of thing. Isn't it silly to compare ourselves to others by what we see as 'superior' in ourselves compared to what we see as 'inferior' in others? The most profound thing he pointed out to those who opposed Christ as the Messiah was that a changed heart is produced by the Spirit of God, not some 'act' or 'practice' man engages in. A changed heart is God-produced, God-ordained, and God-blessed. The 'we are better' mentality comes with prideful attitude of seekin...

Are you one of those folks who need to "have it all together" in order to "do life"? I bet you  have been pretty disappointed with just how much you find yourself struggling to even get it together in the first place - let alone keeping it together! We constantly limit our potential whenever we think "perfection" is the goal and WE are the ones to actually accomplish this goal! My friends, perfection IS the goal (Christ), but WE are not the ones going to accomplish the goal (salvation and all the "clean up" that comes with it). All we can do is head toward it - Christ is actually the one beckoning us on and he will be the one who gets us over the finish line! I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is ...

Beauty: the adjustment of all parts proportionately so that one cannot add or subtract or change without impairing the harmony of the whole.  (Leon Battista Alberti) Is there anyone else out there that is constantly adjusting the parts? My sister has this tendency to put down a cup, plate, or even a napkin - then she returns to it repeatedly moving it a little here or there, never really just allowing it just to be 'okay'. Now, I just set the table and enjoy the meal - the position of the 'stuff' doesn't really matter all that much to me. I wonder how many of us go through life trying to 'adjust the parts', not really sure what is 'proportionately correct' in them? We are fine as long as none of the pieces seem to get lost, or someone upsets our apple cart. The moment we find the pieces falling apart, we panic! We adjust and readjust, sometimes in an attempt to get them all back in the 'regular order' we have established, and at others...

Do you ever feel like the only thing that remains constant in your life is change? You are probably not alone in this impression because change is all around us. We are expected to change sometimes at the drop of a hat, while other change is gradual and kind of creeps up on us without us really noticing the change has been occurring. Change comes in all shapes and sizes - ranging from crazy, radical change to the subtle changes of age. Change is merely the process of making something that was one way to no longer have the same form. I have to ask a question here - if that 'something' was left alone, would it truly not change? Even things 'left alone' in life will change over time. There will always be influencing factors that lead to change of some sort - maybe not immediately perceptible to the naked eye, but there has been change nonetheless. What would the content of our life be like if Jesus was not an active part of the change we experience in our life? What would ...

Father, may they clearly know Your will and achieve the height and depth of spiritual wisdom and understanding. May their lives be a credit to You, Lord; and what’s more, may they continue to delight You by doing every good work and growing in the true knowledge that comes from being close to You. Strengthen them with Your infinite power, according to Your glorious might, so that they will have everything they need to hold on and endure hardship patiently and joyfully. (Colossians 1:9-11 VOICE) Although the passage we are looking at today was written as a prayer for the church at Colossae, it has some meaning for us as fellow believers in the grace and forgiveness of God. Most of us will quickly admit one of the most frequent struggles we face is this assurance we are acting in the will of God - knowing what to do, when to do it, and how it should be accomplished.  As we get more experienced with doing things in life, we often discover there is more than one way to actually d...

God did something the law could never do.  You see, human flesh took its toll on God’s law. In and of itself, the law is not weak; but  the flesh weakens it. So to condemn the sin that was  ruling  in the flesh, God sent His own Son, bearing the likeness of sinful flesh, as a sin offering.    Now we are able to live up to the justice demanded by the law. But that ability has not come from living by our fallen human nature; it has come because we walk according to the movement of the Spirit in our lives .    If you live your life animated by the flesh— namely, your fallen, corrupt nature —then your mind is focused on the matters of the flesh. But if you live your life animated by the Spirit— namely, God’s indwelling presence —then your focus is on the work of the Spirit.   (Romans 8:3-5 VOICE) Ernest Hemingway is quoted as saying, " Never mistake motion for action ." His advice is quite correct, for not all movement or motion is action - it...

We begin a lot of things, don't we?  How many of these do we actually finish?  In terms of finishing, we don't do as well as we do with the beginning part!  To finish well, we need to have not only tenacity, but we need to have set out on an endeavor we find worthwhile and rewarding.  If the thing we set out to do is so overbearing and adds burden instead of delight, we get bogged down and often lay it aside because it is "too hard".  It is like when we say we will read the Bible in a year.  We find ourselves reading for the sake of reading - not really taking time to savor the truth contained within.  We plug on through the "boring" chapters, get excited about checking off the finished portions, and then look at how much still lays ahead.  The issue is not so much in the starting, it is in the finishing.  How we finish is as important as that we finish! My child ,  listen to me and do as I say,  and you will have a long, good lif...